Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uflorida!ufqtp!sutherla
From: sutherla@qtp.ufl.edu (scott sutherland)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: ANIM converter?
Message-ID: <957@orange9.qtp.ufl.edu>
Date: 24 Mar 90 23:33:08 GMT
Reply-To: sutherla@qtp.ufl.edu (scott sutherland)
Distribution: na
Organization: University of Florida Quantum Theory Project
Lines: 37


	I was playing around with both Lights!Camera!Action
and AniMagic recently and both will allow me to incorporate
animations into either slideshows (LCA) or special video effects (AM).
However, there is one serious flaw.  Both products are from Aegis,
and thus they only support AEGIS/SPARTA format ANIMS.  Now, I do most
of my animations with TS and SculptAnimate 3D, neither of which create
A/S ANIMS.  Now, I know that TurboSilver SV has an option to save ANIMS
in another format than its own proprietary format (is this the A/S ANIM
format?  I cannot remember, but I will look it up), so I cannot use
any of these fantastic animations (Juggler, Boingmachine, etc) in my
presentations.  This hurts when I am trying to show off the Amiga to
potential buyers.  

	Now, there is a program to exchange between the various OBJECT
formats of these programs (Interchange, an invaluable aid to anyone using
the Amiga for animation), but I cannot find any program which will convert
between the various ANIM formats.  Is this even possible?  If it is, I would
think that someone out there could make quite a bit of $$ for writing an
"INTERCHANGE"-style program (by that I mean Modular, with modules for TS,
SA, VideoScape, etc.) that will do just that.

	Finally, will any of the other presentation programs, like the Director
or Elan Performer, allow you to use any of the ANIM formats??  LCA could have
done this IF they had NOT locked into the program WHICH ANIM PLAYER was to 
be used.  The ideal presentation program should allow you to assign to a given
animation which player it requires.  This would allow you to stipulate that 
A/S ANIMs  would use ShowAnim, SA anims would use Movie, etc..  This would also
allow you to incorporate the latest versions of these players as they became 
available (like the recent ShowAnim 5.40).  Does such a program exist?  If not,
anyone out there ambitious enough to do so?  (My programming ability is not even
close enough for me to think about such an undertaking!!).

Thanks,

Scott Sutherland
sutherla@qtp.ufl.edu